Fighter Combat - Tactics and Maneuvering

ONE-VERSUS-ONE MANEUVERING, DISSIMILAR AIRCRAFT 163
further by skillful use of flaps. The Focke-Wulf, however, may have 20
percent better power loading. Here are two masters at work:
A plane was approaching, and because of its long nose I thought it was a
Mustang. Turning into it I received a shock; it was neither a Mustang nor an
ME-109, but a new Focke-Wulf; its long nose was the latest improvement of
the famed FW. These planes with the longer noses were rumored to have
more horsepower than their predecessors, and were capable of giving a
Mustang a rough time. We met practically head-on and both of us banked our
planes in preparation for a dogfight.
Around and around we went. Sometimes the FW got in close, and other
times, when I'd drop my flap to tighten my turn, I was in a position to nre; but
the German, sensing my superior position, kept swinging down in his turn,
gaining speed and quickly pulling up, and with the advantage in height he
would then pour down on my tail. Time was in his favor, he could fight that
way for an hour and still have enough fuel to land anywhere below him. I still
had 400 miles of enemy territory to fly over before I could land. Something
had to be done. Throwing caution to the wind I lifted a flap, dove and pulled
up in a steep turn, at the same time dropping a little flap. The G was terrific,
but it worked, and I had the ferry nailed for sure. Pressing the tit I waited, but
nothing happened, not a damned thing. My guns weren't firing.
By taking this last gamble I had lost altitude but had been able to bring my
guns to bear while flying below the FW. With his advantage of height he came
down, pulled up sharp, and was smack-dab on my tail again. The 20 mm.
cannons belched and I could see what looked like golf balls streaming by me.
A little less deflection and those seemingly harmless golf balls would have
exploded instantly upon contact with my plane. "Never turn your back on an
enemy" was a byword with us, but I had no choice. Turning the plane over on
its back I yanked the stick to my gut. My throttle was wide open and I left it
there as I dove. The needle stopped at 600 miles per—that was as far as it
could go on the dial. Pulling out I expected at any minute to have the wings
rip off, the plane was bucking so much. The last part of my pull-up brought
me up into clouds. I was thankful to have evaded the long-nosed FW, for that
pilot was undoubtedly the best that I had ever met. 1
Practical Aspects of the Energy Fight. Although the foregoing tactics
are academically sound in a sterile environment, there are some practical
considerations which complicate matters in actual combat. One of these is
the difficulty of maintaining sight of the opponent. Extension/pitch-back
tactics result in great distances being generated between fighter and bogey.
Additionally, the pilot of the energy fighter spends much of his time
looking over his shoulder at the bogey, making visual tracking even more
difficult. A very small bogey may force the energy fighter pilot into reducing
his extension times, thereby achieving less energy advantage during
each extension. Looking over his shoulder also complicates aircraft control
for the pilot of the energy fighter. For example, it is difficult to judge a
wings-level attitude for commencing a pitch-back while looking backward.
The aircraft's speed and altitude also may have to be judged by feel,
since the pilot may not be able to afford to take his eyes off the bogey for a
peek at the gauges. This can be especially hazardous during low-altitude